The Dog and His Wife
by sunsingergirl
Summary: InuKag, SessRin, SanMir. Post-manga. The end has come and gone, and a new beginning for Kagome and Inuyasha has arrived. This is a series of one-shots that follows the pair through their lives as they continue on, moving through the world as it changes around them while they try to change as well but remain mostly the same.


A/N: So this is gonna be series of one-shots that will be fairly spread apart, following small instances of our favorite pair's lives after the end of the series. Gonna stick as closely to canon as I can with this one, and if I miss anything or mess anything up – going through a canon review currently, but only up to S3 of the anime and Vol. 6 of the manga, orz, and it's been a looooooooooong while since I've watched it and I've never read the manga before now – please let me know! Basically in this, the idea of the demon mating bonding his lifespan and endurance to her will stand, and the one-shots will follow them through history. The title is based on an old story that's been used in some of the IY fanfiction, called The Dog and His Wife, about the giant dog and his wife who live in the mountains and save a human by letting him stay with them during a storm, so long as he didn't breathe a word about them or where they lived to anyone else. The man left when the storm was over and shortly convinced himself that the woman wasn't with the dog (basically an _inugami_ or _inuyoukai_) of her own free will and that she needed to be "saved" from him, so he rallied a mob to go back into the mountains to slay the giant dog and "rescue" the wife. I've read different endings, some where the mob attacks the couple only to be slain by the dog husband protecting his wife, others where they arrive at an empty hut and the couple have already moved on to who knows where. The ending of IY reminds a lot of people – myself included – of that story, so it seemed an appropriate title.

Sadly, this'll be comprised on one-shots, so it'll be updated as I'm inspired. Sorry!

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**The Dog and His Wife.**

_The End of the Beginning._

He'd waited three years, four months, and sixteen days for this moment.

Well, not specifically _this_ moment, but... This was something he'd wished for so long. Her scent was even sweeter now than it had ever been. When they'd defeated Naraku and Kagome had disappeared into the darkness of the well, Inuyasha wasn't sure he'd ever see her again. He spent his time close to the village for the most part, hoping with everything in him that his gut was right – that she would be back before forever passed them both by and forgot them.

At first, he'd thought the moment he'd waited for all along was when her scent wafted through the air to reach his nose. He'd gone for a quick dash through the forest that bore his name, to both check for any weaker demons that might cause what had effectively become his patron village any harm and to work off some of his restlessness. As soon as his hand touched hers to help her out of the well, he thought that was it. That was what he'd been waiting for all this time.

_But that wasn't it,_ he'd thought a month later, when they finished the ceremony that bound them as husband and wife. It hadn't taken long after her arrival for the two of them to find a quiet while to spend together and share the words and feelings they'd kept secret for so long. As he sat, knees pressed to the grass beside Kagome and before Miroku and Kaede, sipping the ceremonial _sake_ and resisting the urge to scratch the various itches his blue and white wedding robes were causing, Inuyasha couldn't help smiling as he stared at the young _miko_ to his left. His smile only widened when she smiled back.

_That wasn't it either though,_ he remembered thinking early that morning, when he'd awoken to Kagome's scent taking on a new but welcome aspect. He remembered the way his eyes had suddenly fluttered open in surprise, his gasp waking his wife as well. He remembered the way she'd turned over to look at him, her gaze questioning and her eyes still glazed with sleep. He remembered the way she'd whispered his name, and he'd whispered hers in return...

They didn't leave their bed until the sun was quite a bit higher in the sky. They'd been ready, however, when Miroku arrived at their small hut hidden in the trees on the outskirts of the village, and now the trio was on their way to the trading grounds in the next village for Market Day. Kagome had actually been looking forward to this week's Market Day, as she needed to get another pot for the house and more arrowheads. Trotting along beside Inuyasha and Miroku, she looked the perfect picture of the innocent young _miko_ in her red _hakama_ and white _haori_. Instead of tying her hair back in the traditional low tail, though, she'd tied it in a high pony, successfully maintaining her Kagome-ness. For some time, they walked in companionable silence, Kagome smiling as she enjoyed the breeze and the sun, Inuyasha hiding the soft smiles and gentle looks he kept sending her way. Miroku was having quite a time observing the duo.

Inuyasha hadn't told her yet, that the sweet scent of her pregnancy with their first child was already evident to anyone with half a decent nose. Market Day was always one that set him a bit on edge, and he knew if he'd told Kagome about her pregnancy, she wouldn't have wanted to hide it at all. She'd be surprised and overwhelmed with joy, he knew, which was so unlike the majority of women in this time. Any other woman would seek out an abortion if they became pregnant with a _hanyou_'s child, but not his Kagome.

_Keh,_ he'd thought that morning as he'd watched her dress, gulping nervously at where his thoughts were headed. _Wench would probably get all squealy and start spending all our money on baby stuff at the market._

Truthfully, it wasn't that he didn't _want_ Kagome to be excited for their baby – in all actuality, it filled him with no small sense of pride to think about it himself, and her excitement would only prove contagious.

But at the market... On Market Day... It was going to be filled to the brim with humans.

Humans not from their own village. Humans who might tolerate his presence in their midst while he's with Miroku and even Kagome, but... They were humans nonetheless, and humans were unpredictable at best – especially where their prejudices lie. It was more than a probability that they would come across some humans biased against not only _youkai_ and _hanyou_, but also humans who would mate or marry them.

His smile faltered when Kagome's smiling face in his mind was suddenly replaced by his late mother's. Lady Izayoi had been persecuted for birthing the child of a _youkai_, no matter how happy or in love with his father she'd been. _In fact, that had probably made things much worse..._ he mused, his chest tightening as he watched his wife again. She was so beautiful... So pure... And there were so many who see her as tarnished and unholy for the child she carried. They would call it an abomination and seek to "save" her from it and its father...

"Inuyasha?"

Kagome's quiet voice broke him from his reverie. He blinked, relaxing abruptly, and took in the concerned expression on her face, the seeking look in her eyes. It took another moment for him to realize she'd placed her right hand on his arm, so gently he could barely feel it through the sleeve of his fire-rat robe.

_Everything about her is so gentle..._

She never took her eyes off him, and all he could do was watch her in return. Miroku had continued on down the path without them, knowing that whatever was going on, they would likely need to be alone to work it out. Stepping closer to him, Kagome favored him a soft look, the frown marring her pretty features giving Inuyasha an unsettled feeling deep in his gut. Her hand moved from his arm to his chest, and she looked up at him. "Inuyasha, what's wrong?"

He simply shook his head, looking away from her.

The _miko_ huffed. "I know when something's up with you, ya know. I can feel it." With her left hand she used her index and middle fingers to tap her chest, right over her heart. "Right here, _koi_."

Inuyasha hadn't turned his head, but his golden eyes had followed her movements, and his ears twitched visibly when her words reached them. He didn't know how to respond. He'd sworn to himself that he would wait to tell her what he knew until the following day, or _at least_ until they'd returned home from the trading grounds. _When I know she's safe..._

"Keh," he muttered, but there was no malice to it, no annoyance like most other times he uttered the simple noise. "I just- I've got some things on my mind right now. That's all."

She tilted her head and pursed her lips. "Like what?"

That made the _hanyou_ huff and jerk away from her a bit, but Kagome would be hard pressed to not notice the flush that suddenly speckled his cheeks and the bridge of his nose as he turned his face skyward. "Quit worryin' so much! I'm just not ready to talk about it!"

Barely seconds after the words left his mouth, he cringed, unsure of whether to prepare more for the smell of salt or the feel of the ground against his face. But after moments passed and neither came, he couldn't help but jerk his head down to look at her again. To his surprise, Kagome was giving him a patient smile, her eyes shining with understanding, though he could sense the small amount of disappointment in the slight drooping of her shoulders. _She really has matured these last few years..._ he thought as she took a step back from him and dropped her arms to her sides once more. The smile maintained on her lips as she nodded to him and turned, starting after Miroku and knowing that her husband would follow.

And follow he did. Soon enough, they were about caught up to the monk, who had slowed his pace to allow them a chance to meet up with him before entering the trading grounds. He also was well aware of the possible bias the couple could meet during Market Day, and he felt his presence vital to their peace... and, in some extreme situations that were wholly plausible for the day and age they lived in, their well being.

It wasn't long before they found themselves amid the throngs of humans who gathered once a week at the trading grounds just a couple hours from their home village. Inuyasha knew it was an important time, but he hated it all the same. Most of these villagers seldom took a decent bath, and he knew he'd been spoiled by his wife's own obsession with cleanliness when taking a breath during Market Day made him slightly light headed. The shouting and incessant chattering made his ears ache, and when he'd almost lost himself to his overwhelming senses, there came that familiar presence against his arm, and sometimes, when no one else was paying them any heed, a gentle caress of fingertips against one of his temporarily abused ears.

Kagome always knew how to bring him back to himself.

As they paced the trading grounds, shadowing Miroku to make sure the monk found no trouble, they shopped for themselves a bit. Kagome found the pot she was looking for, as well as some arrowheads and fletching she needed to make more arrows. All Inuyasha did was follow her and make sure nothing happened; he'd given her some coin before they'd entered the grounds. That way they could avoid anyone making a scene when he paid for her things. Kagome had been somewhat upset at the suggestion, but Miroku was quick to agree with the _hanyou_ for once, so she went along with it.

So he just spent the day with his hands folded into his robes, watching as his _miko_ wife enjoyed herself. She was practically glowing, and he couldn't decide whether it was from the excitement of Market Day or the secret he had kept to himself to make sure she _could_ enjoy the day.

_Though she'd probably have enjoyed herself a whole lot more if she'd known,_ he couldn't help thinking as he gazed her back a little mournfully now. Fleeting visions of an ecstatic Kagome dashing from stall to stall, merchant to merchant, pointing out items that they would need to get for their new arrival, gushing about how excited she was to be expecting. Hell, knowing the crazy woman, she'd be _bragging_ the whole time to everyone she came across.

That thought steeled his resolve. It pained him to physically distance himself from her for the sake of keeping their marriage a secret from these strangers, unbeknownst to his wife herself, and that, to Inuyasha, was hard work. To throw what was essentially _hard work_ to the side like that... _Not to mention it would likely endanger her if she went around blabbing to everyone we came across that she had lowered herself to be with someone like me..._ Inuyasha knew he needed to stop at that, since that train of thought always sent him into a spiral of upset, but it was hard to steer clear of something he'd gone his whole life knowing. Finally, they came across Miroku finishing up for the day, saddled down with more than he probably would have been able to get without his power of persuasion, and the three of them were on their way back, Kagome carrying her own prizes of the day and Inuyasha helping Miroku heft his all the way back to their village. Making sure Kagome was safe and sound in their own hut, Inuyasha walked Miroku back to where he lived with Sango and their children to drop off the monk's own spoils of Market Day. When he arrived back at their hut a short time later, it was dark, and he wasn't at all surprised to find Kagome finishing their dinner in the new pot.

As soon as he walked into the small abode, the world outside ceased to matter. When his wife turned to him with a pleased smile, Inuyasha wondered briefly how anyone could call what they had evil or dirty.

And several months later, when Kagome gave birth to a son they named Sachi, all he could do as she slept off her exhaustion was stare down at his mostly human son. It was like looking at a mirror during the new moon, observing the way his son looked just like his human self but with a pair of dark grey swiveling pup's ears amid his midnight hair and the warm brown eyes he'd inherited from Kagome. Without caring if anyone saw him, Inuyasha just sat there, smiling like an idiot and nosing at his son. The son Kagome gave him...

_And I'd thought finding out she was pregnant was what I'd been waiting for..._

Now he wasn't so sure what he was waiting for... if anything at all. _How could I expect it to get any better than this?_ he wondered, but knowing how Kagome had already changed his life, he knew there was always the possibility she would surprise him by making it even better. With that thought in mind, he set to work committing his son's scent to memory, the same as he'd done for his wife without even realizing.

_How could anyone ever say you're anything but pure, Sachi? My son..._


End file.
